Xbox is not for sale,' CEO Asha Sharma says

Nicole Carpenter,Contributor,Game Developer

October 1, 2026

schedule2 Min ReadImage via Microsoft.

Amid Microsoft's ongoing struggles with Xbox, the gaming division is not for sale, according to CEO Asha Sharma. Sharma said as much in an interview with the New York Times on Wednesday.

"Xbox is not for sale," Sharma said. "We will do whatever it takes to set the company up for success, and we will look at the right partnerships, the right operating model, and everything needed to achieve that."

A report from The Information in June said Microsoft didn't have immediate plans to spin off Xbox, but that the company "hasn't ruled out spinning out or restructuring the unit as a wholly-owned subsidiary, which could make it easier to sell, or creating a joint venture with other partners." The Information report cited this information to three people with direct knowledge.

Rumors have subsisted since then, but Sharma's comments suggest rumors of a sale are wrong. Her comments, however, do not rule out Microsoft restructuring the company to operate more like LinkedIn, for instance. Microsoft has owned LinkedIn since 2016, but it operated independently as a subsidiary.

Developers looking for new insight on Sharma's strategy may come away short-changed, as much of her insights from the profile echoed previous statements. "All I can do is look at it from a first principles perspective," Sharma said of Xbox's hopeful success. "And I think the industry will require disruption."

Sharma took over for former Xbox CEO Phil Spencer in February. Previously, she worked as Microsoft's CoreAI president. By July, Sharma's Xbox had laid off 1,600 people, with 1,600 more expected later this year. She described this move as "the most significant restructure in XBOX history" in a note to staff. Several studios have since closed, too. She claimed, in that note, that Xbox lost "64 cents for every dollar [Xbox] invested."

“We’ve got a long way to go with Microsoft, and we’re going to take the long-term view," Sharma told the New York Times.

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About the Author

Nicole Carpenter

Contributor, Game Developer

Nicole Carpenter is a veteran reporter who has been covering the video game industry for over a decade.

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